JP2024052996A - Cardboard sheet delivery device - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To continuously supply long cardboard sheets to a cardboard blank manufacturing device for a long period of time without stopping the cardboard blank manufacturing device. [Solution] A cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to the present invention comprises a transfer device 20 for a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, a delivery section 40 for a long cardboard sheet 61 pulled out from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, and a control section 21 for controlling the operation of these. The transfer device 20 replenishes the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at a delivery position where the long cardboard sheet 61 pulled out from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is delivered toward the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a cardboard sheet delivery device that delivers long cardboard sheets from a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, which is made by folding long cardboard sheets into a bellows shape and storing them, to a cardboard blank manufacturing device, and a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack refill device that refills the cardboard sheet delivery device with the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack.

Corrugated boxes are manufactured by folding and assembling blanks (corrugated blanks) cut into a specific shape from corrugated sheets, and come in a variety of types, from standard shapes with standard length, width, and height, to irregular shapes. Corrugated blanks are usually manufactured by cutting out a single plate-shaped corrugated sheet and slitting and scoring where necessary. When manufacturing corrugated blanks to manufacture standard-shaped corrugated boxes, cutting to a specific length and slitting and scoring at specific locations can be carried out continuously and quickly, making it possible to produce large quantities of corrugated blanks at low cost.

On the other hand, in recent years, there has been an increasing demand for on-demand production of cardboard boxes, which allows for the production of cardboard boxes of different sizes to accommodate a variety of packaged items. In such cases, if cardboard blanks of various unfolded shapes were produced from flat cardboard sheets of a fixed size, a lot of cutting waste would occur.

A device has been proposed that produces and stores long cardboard sheets in advance, and when needed, pulls out only the required length to cut out cardboard blanks corresponding to cardboard boxes of the desired size (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This cardboard blank production device is equipped with a conveying device that pulls out and conveys the stocked long cardboard sheets little by little, a cross-cutting device that makes cuts in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, and a vertical-cutting device that makes cuts along the conveying direction, and the vertical-cutting device is movable in the width direction (direction perpendicular to the conveying direction). The long cardboard sheets pulled out from the stock are first cut to the required length by the cross-cutting device, and then cut and slit the sheets at appropriate places by the cross-cutting device and vertical-cutting device to produce cardboard blanks of the required shape and size. In many cases, lines are also drawn at appropriate places.

In this on-demand manufacturing of cardboard boxes, it has been proposed to fold the continuously manufactured double-sided cardboard into an accordion shape, store it in that state, and use it in the on-demand manufacturing of cardboard boxes as described above (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1). By folding it into an accordion shape in this way, it becomes possible to store both double-sided and single-sided cardboard as long cardboard sheets.

International Publication No. WO2014/119439

BOX ON DEMAND MACHINE, Panotec Srl, [Retrieved March 11, 2020], Internet <URL: http:// http://www.boxondemand.jp/en/box-on-demand-machines/>

When cardboard blanks are cut out one by one from the front end of a long cardboard sheet folded in an accordion shape, and the length of the remaining long cardboard sheet does not meet the length required for the desired cardboard blank, it is necessary to replenish it with a new long cardboard sheet. In the case of a long cardboard sheet folded in an accordion shape, it is stored in the state of a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack that is stacked vertically by folding it in an accordion shape. Therefore, a new bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is replenished to the device. When performing such work, it is necessary to temporarily stop the cardboard blank manufacturing device, which reduces the manufacturing efficiency of the cardboard blanks and requires extra manual work. Therefore, it is considered to connect the front end of a new long cardboard sheet to the rear end of the long cardboard sheet sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

When the long cardboard sheet is sent from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack to the cardboard blank manufacturing device, the sending device pulls the long cardboard sheet up from the top layer of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack to a higher position. Therefore, when the remaining bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is removed from the sending position and a refill bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is placed at the sending position, if the distance between the refill bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack and the sending device becomes far, the long cardboard sheet connected as described above may bend under its own weight, causing delays in the sending out of the long cardboard sheet.

The objective of this invention is to continuously replenish long cardboard sheets without stopping the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems,
A cardboard sheet delivery device that delivers long cardboard sheets from a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack in which long cardboard sheets are folded into a bellows shape at predetermined lengths to a cardboard blank manufacturing device,
A delivery sensor detects whether the long cardboard sheet is being delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined delivery position;
a stack detection sensor for detecting whether the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack is present at the delivery position;
A transfer device for transferring the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined preparation position to the delivery position;
A control unit that transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present at the delivery position.
The present invention is characterized by comprising:

According to the present invention, by monitoring the usage status of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack placed at the sending position with a stack detection sensor, a refill operation for transferring the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack placed at the preparation position to the sending position can be performed at an appropriate timing. By previously connecting the front end of the long cardboard sheet of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack for refilling placed at the preparation position to the rear end of the long cardboard sheet of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack in use placed at the sending position, the long cardboard sheet can be continuously sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device. Furthermore, by placing a plurality of bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks at the preparation position and keeping the rear end of the long cardboard sheet connected to the front end of the long cardboard sheet of the following bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, it is possible to continuously supply the long cardboard sheet to the cardboard blank manufacturing device for a long period of time.

In addition, the control unit of the cardboard sheet delivery device according to the present invention preferably transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present at the delivery position and the delivery sensor detects that the long cardboard sheet is being delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

When the sending sensor detects that a long cardboard sheet is being sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device, i.e., when the sending of the long cardboard sheet to the cardboard blank manufacturing device is being executed, the control unit moves the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged in the preparation position to the sending position, thereby preventing the long cardboard sheet from sagging due to its own weight when the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is replenished, and enabling the long cardboard sheet to be sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device without delay. This reduces the decrease in the manufacturing efficiency of cardboard blanks caused by stopping the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

The transfer device of the cardboard sheet delivery device according to the present invention is equipped with a pallet transport mechanism that places the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack on a pallet and transports it, and it is preferable that the stack detection sensor is a first sensor that detects the presence of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack on the pallet at the delivery position.

The pallet conveying mechanism allows the smooth movement of heavy bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks. As such a pallet conveying mechanism, a so-called roller conveyor can be used, which is equipped with multiple rollers that rotate while in contact with the underside of the pallet due to the operation of a drive source. Note that the multiple rollers that rotate due to the operation of a drive source do not need to be individually connected to the drive source, and include, for example, a roller in which at least one of the multiple rollers is a drive roller and the multiple rollers are connected by an endless chain or endless belt so as to rotate synchronously. In addition, the drive source for the multiple rollers may be a drive pulley around which an endless chain or endless belt is wound. The drive roller and drive pulley may have a built-in motor, or their rotation shafts may be connected to a separate motor.

In addition, when the first sensor detects that no bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is present on the pallet, the control unit can control the pallet transport mechanism to transport the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the sending position in accordance with the end of use of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack. Here, when the first sensor detects that no bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is present on the pallet, the time includes the time from when the first sensor detects that no bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is present on the pallet until a predetermined time has elapsed. Note that the predetermined time includes the time until the empty pallet is discharged from the sending position, etc.

The cardboard sheet feeding device according to the present invention further includes a second sensor for detecting whether a pallet is present at the feeding position when the cardboard sheet feeding device includes the first sensor,
It is preferable that the control unit transfers the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the discharge position by the transfer device when the first sensor detects that the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present and the second sensor detects that a pallet is not present at the discharge position.

The control unit moves the pallet carrying the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack when the second sensor detects that the pallet is not present at the delivery position, thereby preventing the device from stopping due to collisions between pallets.

The sensor that detects the absence of a pallet at the sending position may be a third sensor that detects that the pallet has passed through a transport path that is discharged from the sending position and heads toward a collection position where the empty pallet is collected.

The cardboard sheet delivery device according to the present invention includes a rotating body that delivers the long cardboard sheet from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the delivery position to the cardboard blank manufacturing device;
It is preferable that the rotating body be rotatably supported at a position higher than the height of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack.

The rotating body, supported at a position higher than the height of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, rotates while abutting against the backside of the long cardboard sheet, allowing the long cardboard sheet to be smoothly pulled out from the upper layer of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, in which the long cardboard sheets are stacked vertically, and sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

It is preferable that the rotating body has a cross-sectional shape of a regular polygon, and the length of one side of the regular polygon corresponds to the predetermined length of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack. The regular polygon may be an equilateral triangle, a square, or the like, so long as the length of one side corresponds to the pitch (predetermined length) of the stacking creases of the long cardboard sheets. By matching the corners of the regular polygon with the pitch of the stacking creases, the contact state between the rotating body and the back surface of the long cardboard sheets is stabilized, and the long cardboard sheets can be reliably pulled out of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, and the long cardboard sheets can be sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device without any delay.

The rotating body may rotate in response to the transport of the long cardboard sheet in the cardboard blank manufacturing device, or the transport device may be operated under the control of the control unit of the cardboard sheet delivery device of this invention, and rotated in conjunction with the transport of the long cardboard sheet in the cardboard blank manufacturing device. By matching the rotation speed of the rotating body with the transport speed of the long cardboard sheet in the cardboard blank manufacturing device, the long cardboard sheet can be smoothly delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device. The delivery sensor that detects whether the long cardboard sheet is being delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device may be a rotation sensor that detects the rotation of the rotating body.

The bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack replenished by the cardboard sheet delivery device preferably comprises a bellows-shaped stack section in which long cardboard sheets are folded into a bellows shape at predetermined lengths, and a joint section that extends from the end of the bottom long cardboard sheet of the bellows-shaped stack section and protrudes from the bellows-shaped stack section.

By joining the front end of a long cardboard sheet pulled out from the upper layer of the bellows laminate of another (rear) bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate to the joint of a long cardboard sheet being used in a cardboard blank manufacturing device, it is possible to smoothly connect multiple bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminates. The connection between the ends of the long cardboard sheets of different bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminates can be performed manually or automatically using a joining device.

In addition, it is preferable that the long cardboard sheet has an auxiliary fold line parallel to the lamination fold line to assist in connecting the end of the joint portion of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate arranged at the sending position to the end of the top layer of the bellows laminate portion of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate arranged at the preparation position. The connection between multiple bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminates may be made by gluing the surfaces of the ends of the long cardboard sheets together, or may be made using a member that assists the connection.

When manually connecting the long cardboard sheets of multiple bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks arranged at the sending position and the preparation position, the long cardboard sheet of the top layer of the other bellows laminate (rear side) is pulled toward the joint part of the bottom layer of one bellows laminate (front side), but this operation can be performed smoothly by providing auxiliary fold lines. Note that this auxiliary fold line may be provided on the long cardboard sheets of the top 2 to 3 layers of the bellows laminate in an unused bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack, taking into account the height of the bellows laminate and the length of the joint part.

In addition, when the end of the joint is joined to the end of the top long cardboard sheet of the bellows laminate of another (rear) bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate by butting the end faces of the end of the joint and the length from the end of the top long cardboard sheet of the bellows laminate to the nearest stacking fold line are preferably a predetermined length for each bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate.

When the end of the joint is butted against the end faces (cut surfaces) of the ends of the long cardboard sheets in the top layer of the bellows laminate of another (rear) bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate, the specified length, i.e., the pitch of the lamination creases, is maintained even in layers where there is a seam between the long cardboard sheets. This allows the long cardboard sheets to be smoothly fed to the cardboard blank manufacturing device regardless of whether there is a seam or not.

In addition, the present invention, which has been made to solve the above problems,
A bellows-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack replenishing device that replenishing a bellows-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack, in which a long corrugated cardboard sheet is folded into a bellows-shaped shape at predetermined lengths, to a corrugated cardboard delivery device,
a stack detection sensor for detecting whether the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack is present at a predetermined delivery position;
A transfer device for transferring the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined preparation position to the delivery position;
A control unit that transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present at the delivery position.
The present invention is characterized by comprising:

By using the cardboard sheet refilling device of the present invention, it is possible to continuously supply long cardboard sheets to the cardboard blank manufacturing device for a long period of time without stopping the cardboard blank manufacturing device.

1 is a schematic side view of a cardboard sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a schematic plan view of a cardboard sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a main control system of the cardboard sheet feeding device according to the embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an overall view of a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack being replenished by a transfer device of a cardboard sheet delivery device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the connection between the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stacks shown in FIG. 4 . FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the connection between the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stacks shown in FIG. 4 . 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the replenishing operation of a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack by a transfer device of a cardboard sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the replenishing operation of a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack by a transfer device of a cardboard sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the replenishing operation of a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack by a transfer device of a cardboard sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Below, we will explain how to implement the present invention with reference to the drawings.

<1. Configuration>
Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of a cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a main control system of the cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to this embodiment pulls out the long cardboard sheet 61 from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 in which the long cardboard sheet 61 is folded into a bellows shape at predetermined lengths, and delivers it to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. The long cardboard sheet 61 delivered by the cardboard sheet delivery device 10 is conveyed to the cardboard blank manufacturing unit (not shown) by the conveying unit 53 of the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50, and a cardboard blank is cut out from the long cardboard sheet 61. When the cardboard blank is cut out, the conveying by the conveying unit 53 is temporarily stopped, so that the conveying of the long cardboard sheet 61 is performed intermittently in accordance with the timing of cutting while maintaining a predetermined conveying speed. The cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 is connected to a control unit 51 that controls these operations, and a control panel 52 that accepts various inputs to the control unit 51 from the user. The cardboard blanks cut out by the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 are then assembled into a cardboard box manually or by an assembly device.

This cardboard sheet delivery device 10 includes a transfer device 20 for a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, a delivery section 40 for a long cardboard sheet 61 pulled out from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, a control section 21 that controls the operation of these components, and a control panel 22 that accepts various inputs to the control section 21 from the user.

The transfer device 20 replenishes the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at the delivery position 31 where the long cardboard sheets 61 pulled out from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 are delivered toward the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. The transfer device 20 supports a plurality of bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks 60 so that they can be transported, and transports the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks 60 along a transport path toward the delivery position 31.

The transfer device 20 includes a pair of roller conveyors 24 that form a transport path for the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 placed on the pallet P. The roller conveyor 24 includes a plurality of transport rollers, and constitutes a pallet transport mechanism that rotates using drive rollers 23 arranged at a predetermined interval as a drive source. The plurality of transport rollers are connected to one of the drive rollers 23 by a chain belt (not shown), and rotate in synchronization with the rotation of the drive roller 23. The bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 placed on the pallet P is transported toward the sending position 31 by the conveying rollers rotating while in contact with the lower surface of the pallet P. As shown by the dashed line in FIG. 2, the downstream side of the transport path in the transfer device 20 closest to the sending section 40 is the sending position 31 where the long cardboard sheet 61 is sent toward the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 by the operation of the sending section 40, and the upstream side is the preparation position 32.

At the midpoint between the pair of roller conveyors 24, a number of free rollers 25 are arranged parallel to the roller conveyors 24 to assist the movement of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60. Between the delivery position 31 and the preparation position 32 on the conveying path, a tiltable rod member (not shown) is provided to regulate the movement of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60. Note that other members may be used to regulate the movement of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60. For example, a plate member that is raised and lowered by an air cylinder may be arranged between the pair of roller conveyors 24. In this case, the movement of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is regulated by raising the plate member to a position higher than the height at which the conveying rollers contact the bottom surface of the pallet P.

The transfer device 20 is provided with a second conveying path for discharging the pallet P that has become empty by pulling out all the long cardboard sheets 61 from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at the sending position 31. The second conveying path is composed of a pair of guide rails 28 extending from the sending position 31 in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60. In this embodiment, the pallet P on which the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is placed is formed of cardboard, and the weight of the pallet P is light. Therefore, by pushing the pallet P toward the second conveying path by a discharging member (not shown), the pallet P slides along the guide rails 28 toward the recovery position 33 downstream of the second conveying path. The pallet P may be discharged to an empty space below the sending section 40. In this case, the control section 21 may control the operation of the drive roller 23 at a position corresponding to the sending position 31 to discharge the empty pallet P.

This cardboard sheet delivery device 10 is equipped with a first sensor 35 as a stack detection sensor that detects the presence of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at the delivery position 31. The first sensor 35 is disposed at a predetermined height position facing the delivery position 31, detects the presence or absence of the long cardboard sheets 61 that form the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 on the pallet P, and transmits the detection result to the control unit 21.

The cardboard sheet delivery device 10 also includes a second sensor 36 that detects whether or not a pallet P is present at the delivery position 31. The second sensor 36 is positioned facing the side of the pallet P at the delivery position 31, detects whether or not a pallet P is present at the delivery position 31, and transmits the detection result to the control unit 21.

Furthermore, this cardboard sheet feeding device 10 is equipped with a third sensor 37 that detects when the pallet P has passed through the second transport path that is discharged from the sending position 31 and heads toward the recovery position 33 where the empty pallet P is recovered. The third sensor 37 is disposed at any position on the way to the recovery position 33 in a position facing the second transport path, detects when the pallet P has passed, and transmits the detection result to the control unit 21. Note that the first sensor 35, second sensor 36, and third sensor 37 can be photoelectric sensors equipped with a light receiving unit and a light emitting unit, or the like.

The delivery section 40 includes a rotating body 41 and a support frame 42 that rotatably supports the rotating body 41. The rotating body 41 rotates about a rotation axis 43 to deliver the long cardboard sheet 61 from the delivery position 31 to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. The cross-sectional shape of the rotating body 41 is an equilateral triangle, and the length of one side of the equilateral triangle is a predetermined length in the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, i.e., a length equivalent to the pitch of the stacking creases when the long cardboard sheet 61 is folded bellows-like.

A rotation sensor 44 is attached to the rotating shaft 43 of the rotating body 41 to detect the rotation state of the rotating body 41. This rotation sensor 44 functions as a sending sensor that detects whether the long cardboard sheet 61 is being sent from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 arranged at the sending position 31 to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. For example, a sensor that measures the amount of rotation such as a rotary encoder can be used as the rotation sensor 44. In this embodiment, the rotation sensor 44 of the rotating body 41 is used as a sending sensor, but is not limited to this. That is, the sending sensor may be a sensor that monitors the conveying status of the long cardboard sheet 61 in the conveying section 53 on the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 side. In this case, the control unit 21 of the cardboard sheet sending device 10 may determine whether the long cardboard sheet 61 is being sent to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 by inputting a signal indicating that the long cardboard sheet 61 is being conveyed, which is transmitted from the control unit 51 on the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 side.

In addition, in this embodiment, the rotor 41 has a cross-sectional shape of an equilateral triangle, but the cross-sectional shape may be a square, a regular pentagon, or the like. It is sufficient that the shape is a regular polygon whose side length corresponds to the pitch of the stacking creases of the long cardboard sheets 61. The rotor 41 is a frame structure made up of radial frame members that extend radially toward the apexes of an equilateral triangle attached to the rotating shaft 43, and parallel frame members that are parallel to the rotating shaft 43 and connect the tips of the radial frame members.

The support frame 42 rotatably supports the rotor 41 at a position higher than the height of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 with the axial direction of the rotation shaft 43 perpendicular to the conveying direction of the long cardboard sheet 61, and is provided with a bearing portion that receives the rotation shaft 43 of the rotor 41. Note that the rotor 41 is preferably located close to the delivery position 31 so that the drawn-out long cardboard sheet 61 does not bend due to its own weight, and the height of the rotor 41 is adjusted taking into consideration the height at which the rotating rotor 41 does not interfere with the top layer of the unused bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60.

<2. Connection of accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet laminate>
Fig. 4 is an overall view of a bellows-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack 60 to be replenished by the transfer device 20 of the corrugated cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 are views showing the connection between the bellows-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stacks 60 shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 5 shows the state before the connection between the joint part 62 of one of the two bellows-shaped corrugated cardboard stacks and the end of the top long corrugated cardboard sheet 61 of the bellows stack part 63 of the other, and Fig. 6 shows the state after the connection. Note that in Figs. 5 and 6, the conveying path of the transfer device 20 is omitted.

The bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 comprises a bellows laminate section 63 in which long cardboard sheets 61 are folded and laminated in a bellows shape at predetermined lengths, and a joint section 62 that extends from the end of the long cardboard sheet 61 at the bottom of the bellows laminate section 63 and protrudes from the bellows laminate section 63. Normally, one bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 is stored on one pallet P.

The bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 has a predetermined length, i.e., the same length as the lamination crease interval L2 between the lamination creases of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 63 and the lamination crease interval L2 (L1 + L3 = L2), which is the sum of the length of the lamination crease 62, which is the length of the lamination crease 62, and the top layer length L3, which is the length from the end of the top long cardboard sheet 61 of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 63 to the closest lamination crease. When the end face (cut surface) of the end 64 of the lamination crease 62 of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 arranged at the sending position 31 and the end face (cut surface) of the end 65 of the top long cardboard sheet 61 of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 arranged at the preparation position 32 are butted together and joined together, for example, with adhesive tape, the lamination crease interval is maintained even in the layer with the joint of the long cardboard sheet 61. This prevents the rotor 41 from stalling the delivery.

A plurality of bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks 60 can be kept waiting on the conveying path of the transfer device 20. When replenishing the conveying path with a new bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, the user may pull out a long cardboard sheet 61 of a length equivalent to the height L4 of the bellows laminated portion 63 of the new bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 (approximately two layers from the top layer) and hang it down in advance, or may bring the refill bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 close to the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 to be connected, and then pull out the long cardboard sheet 61 from the top layer of the bellows laminated portion 63 and hang it down.

In addition, the end 64 of the joint portion 62 of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 arranged at the delivery position 31 in the conveying path of the transfer device 20 or at the preparation position 32 closer to the delivery position 31 can be connected to the end 65 of the top long cardboard sheet 61 of the bellows laminated portion 63 of the subsequent bellows-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 using double-sided tape, adhesive, staples, tacks, etc. The connection between the end 64 of the joint portion 62 and the end 65 of the top long cardboard sheet 61 may be made manually or automatically using an appropriate connection device. Whatever the connection method, it is sufficient that the pitch of the lamination creases is maintained in the layer with the joint of the long cardboard sheet 61 when the end 64 of the joint portion 62 and the end 65 of the top long cardboard sheet 61 of the bellows laminated portion 63 are connected.

In addition to the lamination creases 66, the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60 has auxiliary creases 67 that run parallel to the lamination creases 66 to assist in connecting the lamination creases to the joint portion 62 (Figure 5). The auxiliary creases 67 do not need to be provided on all layers of the accordion-shaped laminate 63, and may be provided on, for example, the top two or three layers of the unused accordion-shaped cardboard sheet laminate 60.

By providing the auxiliary creases 67 with a pitch shorter than the pitch of the lamination creases 66, even if the space between the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks 60 is narrow, the worker can easily manually pull down the long cardboard sheet 61 from the top layer of the bellows stacking section 63 of the following bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 (Figure 6). In this way, the connection between the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 arranged at the sending position 31 and the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 arranged at the preparation position 32, and the connection between the multiple bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stacks 60 arranged at the preparation position 32 can be made more efficient. Note that the auxiliary creases 67 are preferably provided at a position that is half the pitch of the lamination creases 66. Furthermore, if half the width of the adhesive tape is attached to the joint section 62 side in advance across the width of the long cardboard sheet 61, the manual connection work can be made more efficient.

<3. Refilling Operation>
7 to 9 are diagrams illustrating the replenishing operation of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 by the transfer device 20 of the cardboard sheet delivery device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 shows a state where the pallet P has been discharged, and FIG. 9 shows a state where the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at the preparation position 32 is being transferred toward the delivery position 31. 4 shows the state in which the stack of cardboard sheets 60 has been placed at the delivery position 31 .

When the detection result transmitted from the first sensor 35 indicates that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 on the pallet P at the sending position 31 is "absent," the control unit 21 operates the dispensing member of the pallet P to send out the empty pallet P to the second conveying path. Next, when the detection result transmitted from the second sensor 36 indicates that the pallet P is not present at the sending position 31, the control unit 21 drives the driving roller 23 of the roller conveyor 24 to transport the pallet P on which the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is placed to the sending position 31. During this series of operations, the control unit 21 is in a state in which the measured value of the rotation amount is input from the rotation sensor 44. In other words, these operations are performed when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is not present at the sending position 31 and the sending sensor detects that the long cardboard sheet 61 is being sent out to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50. In addition, since the first sensor 35 detects the presence of the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 at a predetermined height, when the input indicates that the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is "absent," this includes not only the case where the long cardboard sheets 61 on the pallet P are completely gone, but also the case where a small amount of the long cardboard sheets 61 remains at a position lower than the detection position of the first sensor 35.

When the third sensor 37 detects that the pallet P has passed through the second transport path toward the recovery position 33 where the empty pallet P discharged from the sending position 31 is recovered, the control unit 21 uses the display on the control panel 22 and a warning light to prompt the operator to move the pallet P from the recovery position 33.

In addition, when the third sensor 37 detects that the pallet P has passed through the second conveying path toward the recovery position 33 where the empty pallet P discharged from the sending position 31 is recovered, the control unit 21 may determine that there is no empty pallet P at the sending position 31 and drive the driving roller 23 of the roller conveyor 24 to transport the pallet P on which the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is placed to the sending position 31. In this case, the second sensor 36 may be omitted. Furthermore, when the detection result of the first sensor is an input indicating that there is no long cardboard sheet 61 on the pallet P, there is an input by the third sensor indicating that the pallet P has passed through the second conveying path toward the recovery position, and the detection result of the second sensor is an input indicating that there is no pallet P at the sending position 31, the control unit 21 may drive the driving roller 23 of the roller conveyor 24 to transport the pallet P on which the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is placed to the sending position 31. That is, the control unit 21 may execute the transfer of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 based on a combination of input states from multiple sensors.

The above describes the form for implementing the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and appropriate modifications are permitted within the scope of the spirit of the present invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, the cardboard sheet delivery device 10 and the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50 are each configured to have a control unit and a control panel, but the cardboard sheet delivery device 10 may also be controlled by the control unit 51 of the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the device has been mainly described as a cardboard sheet delivery device 10, but the device, which is composed of a transfer device 20, various sensors including a stack detection sensor, and a control unit 21 that controls the transfer device 20 based on the sensor input, is also a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack refill device.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, in the above embodiment, a pallet conveying mechanism using a pair of roller conveyors 24 is used in the transfer device 20 from the viewpoint of being able to withstand the weight of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60. However, as long as the conveying mechanism can withstand the weight of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60, for example, a belt conveying mechanism in which the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 that is not placed on a pallet P is placed on a running endless belt and conveyed may be used.

In the above embodiment, the transfer operation of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 to the delivery position 31 was described in the case where the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 is not present at the delivery position 31 and the delivery sensor detects that the long cardboard sheet 61 is being delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device 50, but this is not limited to the above. In other words, even when the conveyance of the long cardboard sheet 61 is stopped for a short period of time to cut out the cardboard blank, the control unit 21 may execute the transfer operation of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack 60 to the delivery position 31.

10 Cardboard sheet delivery device 20 Transfer device 21 Control unit 22 Control panel 23 Drive roller 24 Roller conveyor 25 Free roller 31 Delivery position 32 Preparation position 33 Recovery position 35 First sensor 36 Second sensor 37 Third sensor 40 Delivery unit 41 Rotating body 42 Support frame 43 Rotating shaft 44 Rotation sensor 50 Cardboard blank manufacturing device 51 Control unit 52 Control panel 53 Conveying unit 60 Accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack 61 Long cardboard sheet 62 Joint portion 63 Accordion stacking unit 64 End of joint portion 65 End of top layer of bellows stacking unit 66 Stacking fold line 67 Auxiliary fold line L1 Joint length L2 Length between stacking fold lines L3 Top layer length L4 Height P of bellows stacking unit Pallet

Claims (6)

A cardboard sheet delivery device that delivers long cardboard sheets from a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack in which long cardboard sheets are folded into a bellows shape at predetermined lengths to a cardboard blank manufacturing device,
A delivery section that delivers the long cardboard sheets from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined delivery position to the cardboard blank manufacturing device;
A sending sensor that detects whether the sending unit is sending out the long cardboard sheet based on the operating state of the sending unit;
a stack detection sensor for detecting whether the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack is present at the delivery position;
A transfer device for transferring the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined preparation position to the delivery position;
A control unit that transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present at the delivery position.
A cardboard sheet feeding device comprising: The cardboard sheet delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit, when the stack detection sensor detects that the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is not present at the delivery position and the delivery sensor detects that the delivery unit is delivering the long cardboard sheet, transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device. The transfer device includes a pallet transfer mechanism that transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack on a pallet,
3. The cardboard sheet delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the stack detection sensor is a first sensor that detects the presence of the accordion-shaped cardboard sheet stack on the pallet at the delivery position. The delivery section includes a rotating body and a support frame that rotatably supports the rotating body at a position higher than the height of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack;
The cardboard sheet delivery device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: The cardboard sheet delivery device according to claim 4, wherein the delivery sensor is a rotation sensor that detects the rotation state of the rotating body. A cardboard sheet delivery device that delivers long cardboard sheets from a bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack in which long cardboard sheets are folded into a bellows shape at predetermined lengths to a cardboard blank manufacturing device,
A delivery sensor detects whether the long cardboard sheet is being delivered to the cardboard blank manufacturing device from the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined delivery position;
a stack detection sensor provided at a predetermined height position of the delivery position and detecting whether the remaining amount of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack is equal to or less than a predetermined amount other than 0;
A transfer device for transferring the accordion-shaped corrugated cardboard sheet stack arranged at a predetermined preparation position to the delivery position;
a control unit that transfers the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack arranged at the preparation position to the delivery position by the transfer device when the stack detection sensor detects that the remaining amount of the bellows-shaped cardboard sheet stack at the delivery position is equal to or less than the predetermined amount;
A cardboard sheet feeding device comprising:

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